Player of the year: Prior to the Group 3 state final, a rival coach called Cranford’s Ryan Williamson “the best big-game pitcher in the state.”

A few days later, the senior left-hander once again lived up to his reputation.

Williamson capped both a stellar senior season and a remarkable high school career with his second victory in a state final in as many years, giving his team its second straight state crown, third in four years and the No. 1 spot in the final Star-Ledger Top 20 of 2013.

“He’s been great,” said Cranford shortstop Sean Feeney. “He’s been consistent every start. He’s going to give it his best. You give him a run or two, and you’re good to go.”

Williamson, a First Team All-State selection who will pitch at North Carolina State next year, went 11-0 with a 0.56 ERA for Cranford, leading it to every championship -- conference, county, sectional and state -- the Cougars could possibly win this spring. Williamson, who was also drafted by the Texas Rangers in the 28th round of the Major League Baseball First-Year Players Draft with the 850th overall pick, struck out 88 and walked 22 in 75 1/3 innings, finishing with a WHIP of 0.90.

“My goal was to just keep getting better and better as the season went on,” Williamson said. “When I’m handed the ball, I just try to do my thing and put my team in the best way to win.”

In tournament elimination games, Williamson was 7-0 with two saves and a 0.71 ERA. In 49-1/3 innings, he allowed five runs on 34 hits with 58 strikeouts and 16 walks. In his nine tournament outings, Williamson made six starts, throwing a complete game in all, and three relief appearances.

“I’ve been catching him since I was 7 years old,” Cranford catcher Chris Folinusz said. “He’s the only person in the state I would want to have on the mound for my team.”

The southpaw was also an integral cog in Cranford’s offensive attack. Batting fifth in the order, Williamson, who played center field when not pitching, batted .419 with two home runs, 11 doubles, two triples, 27 RBI and 14 runs with a .457 on-base percentage.

Perfection by committee: Six Westfield pitchers combined for a perfect game in a 6-0 triumph over Oratory on May 22. The pitchers and their stats on the day: Brad DeMartino (the winning pitcher, three strikeouts in one inning), Quinn Dursee (five strikeouts in two innings), Jack Bunting (one strikeout in one inning), Ben Herbster (one strikeout in one inning), Chris Hogge (two strikeouts in one inning) and Jake Wasserman (scoreless inning).

With Cranford's Ryan Williamson and Elizabeth ace Fernando Guerrero both throwing seven shutout innings each, the two teams entered the eighth inning. In the top half of the frame, Elizabeth got runners on first and third, but Williamson and Cranford worked out of it. Elizabeth and Guerrero couldn’t do the same in the bottom half, as Cranford got runners on second and third, then won the game on a wild pitch during a suicide squeeze attempt.

When Union Catholic’s Ryan DePaul struck out with a runner on third and first base open, the ball got past the Summit catcher. That allowed DePaul to reach first and the runner, Joe Bonnaccorso, to score.

But the umpires ruled the play catcher’s interference and sparked a 20-minute conference featuring both coaching staffs that was animated at times and featured a rulebook being brought out on the field to try and decipher what the correct call should be.

The end result was that DePaul was given first, Bonnaccorso was sent back to third and Summit got the third out, giving up no runs in the frame.

Coach gives commencement address:Roselle Catholic coach John Schmitt, a member of the Roselle Catholic Class of 1968, gave the commencement address at the school’s graduation ceremonies. The honor capped what was a strong finish to the spring for Schmitt and the Lions, as Roselle Catholic sprung two upsets on the road in the South Jersey, Non-Public B tournament, against St. Joseph of Hammonton in the first round and St. Rose, the section’s top seed, in the quarterfinals. Roselle Catholic then bowed out to eventual state champion Rutgers Prep in the semifinals.

Another strong year for SPF:Scotch Plains (15-10) finished with 15 or more victories for the seventh time in the last 10 seasons, and advanced to the semifinal round of the UCT for the sixth straight spring despite starting just three seniors.

Doug Carter, Union, 6-0, 205 pounds, Senior
Outfielder batted .482 with two home runs and eight doubles, finishing with a team-leading 41 hits. Scored 28 runs, stole 20 bases and had 19 RBI. Posted an on-base percentage of .563 and slugged .647. Played phenomenally in the outfield. Finished career with 101 hits.

Andrew DiFrancesco, Cranford, 5-7, 150 pounds, Senior
Outfielder led the state's top-ranked team in hitting with a .446 average. Had 37 hits, 11 of which went for extra bases (10 doubles and a triple) out of the three-hole in Cranford's lineup. DiFrancesco finished with 25 runs, 22 RBI and OBP of .473. Stole 14 bases. Will play at Brookdale Community College in Lincroft.

Sean Feeney, Cranford, 5-10, 175 pounds, Senior
Second Team All-State shortstop hit .412 with a home run, 14 doubles, three triples and 21 RBI. Had 33 hits and scored 26 runs. Had a .479 on-base percentage and slugged .700. Started in three state finals, registering an RBI in all three. Will play at Rutgers next year.

Chris Folinusz, Cranford, 6-1, 215 pounds, Senior
Second Team All-State selection batted .434 with three home runs, 11 doubles, three triples and 30 RBI. Catcher had 36 hits in total and scored 24 runs. Posted an on-base percentage of .473 and slugged .771. Stole eight bases. Will play at Rutgers next year.

Kevin Galasso, Westfield, 6-3, 175 pounds, Senior
Tufts-bound right-hander was instrumental in team's run to Group 4 state final, going 8-2 with a 3.21 ERA. In 69-2/3 innings of work, Galasso struck out 53 and walked 16. In the state and county tournaments, went a combined 5-1 with a 3.36 ERA in 41-2/3 innings, striking out 33 and walking 13.

Marc Giacalone, New Providence, 5-10, 170 pounds, Junior
Infielder reached base safely in all but one game, hitting .481 with a home run, 10 doubles and two triples. Scored 30 runs and had 20 RBI, finishing with 37 hits in total. Also walked 20 times, finishing with an on-base percentage of .586. Slugged .701 and stole eight bases. Was also a strong defender in the field.

Fernando Guerrero, Elizabeth, 5-9, 170 pounds, Senior
Hard-throwing right-hander was 4-1 with a 0.57 ERA in 36-2/3 innings, striking out 42 and walking 15. Allowed just 21 hits and had a WHIP of 0.98. Also hit .354 with three home runs, six doubles, 14 runs, 11 RBI and a .418 on-base percentage.

Ryan Jennings, Gov. Livingston, 5-11, 195 pounds, Junior
Junior hit .453 with 39 hits, 19 of which were for extra bases (13 doubles, five home runs and a triple). Scored 30 runs and had 30 RBI. Stole eight bases and had an on-base percentage of .525.

Ryan Kahn, Union Catholic, 5-11, 150 pounds, Junior
Left-hander was 4-4 with a 2.07 ERA. In 47-1/3 innings, the southpaw struck out 50 batters and walked 14. Team was shut out in all four of Kahn's losses. The junior also played center field and batted leadoff, hitting .322 with 14 RBI and 12 stolen bases.

Ivan Olivera, Elizabeth, 5-11, 185 pounds, Senior
Outfielder led team with .459 average and 39 hits, clubbing five home runs, six doubles and a triple. Had 30 RBI and scored 17 runs. Had an on-base percentage of .495.

TJ Santiago, Linden, 5-10, 155 pounds, Senior
Right-hander was the pitcher of record in 67 percent of his team's victories, including an upset of heavily favored Edison in the first round of the state tournament. Adelphi College-bound hurler was 4-4 with an 2.57 ERA. All four losses came by two runs or fewer. Struck out 48 and walked 12 in 49 innings, allowing 34 hits. Scored 21 runs and stole 17 bases, hitting three doubles, two home runs and two triples with nine RBI.

Ryan Williamson, Cranford, 6-3, 200 pounds, Senior
County Player of the Year and First Team All-State selection picked up second victory in Group 3 final in as many years to lead team to 25-1 finish and No. 1 in The Star-Ledger Top 20. Southpaw went 11-0 with a 0.56 ERA, striking out 88 and walked 22 in 75 1/3 innings with a WHIP of 0.90. Hit .419 with two home runs, 11 doubles, two triples, 27 RBI and 14 runs with a .457 on-base percentage. Drafted by the Texas Rangers in the 28th round of the MLB First-Year Players Draft but will attend North Carolina State.